WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Philip II of Spain is considered an absolute monarch for two reasons. First and foremost, he had no checks on his authority; while he had a court of nobles that he relied on to maintain control over Spain, none of these nobles had any power over Philip in the way that a parliament might.

Detailed explanation-2: -Philip II was the son of Charles V and a member of the Hapsburg family. A devout Catholic, he ascended to the Spanish throne in 1556 and did not give it up until his death 42 years later in 1598. Philip II was the epitome of an absolute ruler, who ruled with complete power over the government and the people.

Detailed explanation-3: -Philip was the self-proclaimed protector of the Roman Catholic Church. He sought to limit the spread of Protestantism, and he ultimately completed the work of unification begun by Ferdinand and Isabella (the “Catholic Monarchs”) in the Iberian Peninsula.

Detailed explanation-4: -In 1516, inheriting the dynastic union formed by his maternal grandparents Isabella I and Ferdinand II, he became king of Spain as co-monarch of the Spanish kingdoms with his mother, who was deemed incapable of ruling due to mental illness.